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AB-985 Pupil nutrition: whole milk and 2 percent milk: elementary school pilot programs.(2019-2020)

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Date Published: 04/12/2019 04:00 AM
AB985:v98#DOCUMENT

Amended  IN  Assembly  April 11, 2019

CALIFORNIA LEGISLATURE— 2019–2020 REGULAR SESSION

Assembly Bill
No. 985

Introduced by Assembly Member Robert Rivas

February 21, 2019

An act to amend Section 49570 add Article 15 (commencing with Section 49595) to Chapter 9 of Part 27 of Division 4 of Title 2 of the Education Code, relating to pupil nutrition.


LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST


AB 985, as amended, Robert Rivas. Pupil nutrition: whole milk. milk and 2 percent milk: elementary school pilot programs.
Existing law requires each school district or county superintendent of schools maintaining kindergarten or any of grades 1 to 12, inclusive, and, commencing with the 2019–20 school year, each charter school, to provide each needy pupil with one nutritionally adequate free or reduced-price meal during each schoolday. Existing law authorizes a school district or county office of education, in order to comply with that requirement, to use funds made available through any federal or state program the purpose of which includes the provision of meals to a pupil, including, among other programs, the federal National School Lunch Program, or to provide those meals at the expense of the school district or county office of education.
Existing law authorizes a school district, county superintendent of schools, or other public or private entity that participates in programs under the federal National School Lunch Act to, if consistent with federal law, offer whole milk, in addition to other kinds of milk, if federal regulations require a lunch eligible for federal cash reimbursement under the act to contain unflavored, fluid lowfat milk, skim milk, or buttermilk.
This bill would prohibit a school district, county superintendent of schools, or other public or private entity that offers pupils whole milk under those circumstances from seeking federal cash reimbursement for the whole milk, but would authorize those entities to seek other cash reimbursement for the whole milk. authorize a school district, county office of education, or charter school to establish a pilot program at the schoolsite of an elementary school within its jurisdiction for purposes of evaluating the impacts of whole or 2 percent unflavored milk consumption among pupils, as specified, and would authorize a school participating in a pilot program to receive funds from public or private sources to implement the pilot program.
Vote: MAJORITY   Appropriation: NO   Fiscal Committee: YESNO   Local Program: NO  

The people of the State of California do enact as follows:


SECTION 1.

 Article 15 (commencing with Section 49595) is added to Chapter 9 of Part 27 of Division 4 of Title 2 of the Education Code, to read:
Article  15. Whole Milk or 2 Percent Milk in Elementary School Pilot Programs

49595.
 For purposes of this article, the following definitions apply:
(a) “Elementary school” means a school of a school district or county office of education, or a charter school, maintaining kindergarten or any of grades 1 to 6, inclusive.
(b) “Local educational agency” means a school district, county office of education, or charter school.
(c) “Participating school” means an elementary school at which a pilot program has been established.
(d) “Pilot program” means a whole milk or 2 percent milk in elementary school pilot program established pursuant to Section 49596.

49596.
 (a) To the extent allowable by local, state, and federal law and policies, a local educational agency may establish a pilot program at the schoolsite of an elementary school within its jurisdiction for purposes of evaluating the impacts of whole or 2 percent unflavored milk consumption on pupils that attend participating schools.
(b) On behalf of the schoolsite of an elementary school within its jurisdiction, a local educational agency may partner with both of the following:
(1) A nonprofit organization to donate whole or 2 percent unflavored milk for pupil consumption.
(2) A research organization to enact a pilot program in accordance with this article.
(c) A participating school shall not do either of the following as part of a pilot program:
(1) Offer whole or 2 percent unflavored milk during the prescribed federal meal program hours of operation of the federal National School Lunch Program or the federal School Breakfast Program.
(2) Discriminate in offering whole or 2 percent unflavored milk based on a pupil’s free or reduced-price meal eligibility.
(d) A participating school is encouraged to evaluate changes in pupil academic performance resulting from, and pupil response to, consuming whole or 2 percent unflavored milk as part of a pilot program.
(e) A participating school may receive funds from public or private sources to implement a pilot program.

49597.
 Participation in a pilot program pursuant to Section 49596 shall not constitute a violation of the Pupil Nutrition, Health, and Achievement Act of 2001 (Article 2.5 (commencing with Section 49430)).

SECTION 1.Section 49570 of the Education Code is amended to read:
49570.

(a)Each school district, county superintendent of schools, and other public or private entity that participates in programs under the federal National School Lunch Act, as amended, and as prescribed by Chapter 13 (commencing with Section 1751) of Title 42 of the United States Code, may, if not prohibited by federal law, offer whole milk, in addition to other kinds of milk, if federal regulations require a lunch eligible for federal cash reimbursement under the act to contain unflavored, fluid lowfat milk, skim milk, or buttermilk.

(b)A school district, county superintendent of schools, or other public or private entity that offers pupils whole milk when federal regulations require milk eligible for federal cash reimbursement under the act to contain unflavored, fluid lowfat milk, skim milk, or buttermilk shall not seek federal cash reimbursement for the whole milk, but may seek other cash reimbursement for the whole milk.